Throwback Thursday: FnF Trips
- Faiz Faisal
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
20 Years of Friendship, 2 Trips, and the Struggle of Planning an FnF Getaway
If you told me two decades ago that my core group of friends would still be in each other's lives today, I would’ve completely believed you. But if you told me that after 20 whole years of friendship, we would only have two trips to show for it? Yeah, I probably would’ve laughed in your face.
Yet, here we are.
Meet "FnF" (short for Fresh n Floral) a weirdly iconic group name I assigned to the four of us years ago. Fun fact: we actually started out as PPP (Persatuan Perempuan Perkasa), but I felt that sounded a bit too intensely feminist and wanted something more inclusive and chill. So, during a group call one day, I looked over at the Glade air freshener sitting on my desk, saw the words "Fresh n Floral," and thought, Yep, that’s us.
You’d imagine that after almost two decades of shenanigans, we’d have conquered half the globe together. But life happens, adulting kicks in, and our grand travel itinerary currently stands at a modest grand total of two.
The Throwback: Bali and the Bangkok "Inconveniences" ✈️
Our very first trip was to Bali with just three of us. It was amazing, but our second trip—almost a decade ago to Bangkok—was the first and only time all four of us managed to travel together.
Looking back at those trips, what blows my mind is that we almost never talk about the famous landmarks, the fancy aesthetic cafes, or the picture-perfect tourist spots we visited. Instead, we constantly revisit the total chaotic disasters that ended up becoming our most treasured memories.
Like the time we found ourselves sprinting for our lives from a pack of stray dogs on the streets of Bangkok. Or the time two of us were dead tired from walking all day, spotted a massage parlour near our hotel, and walked right in hoping for a quick foot rub—only for the guy at the door to point straight at me and gently inform us that it was a men-only establishment. One quick scan of the wall decor and we suddenly understood exactly what kind of "spa" we had stumbled into!
Those wild, unexpected, slightly inconvenient moments? That’s the real highlight of traveling with lifelong besties.
The Married-with-Kids Travel Coordination Nightmare 🗓️
Lately, I’ve been feeling like it’s about time for FnF to regroup and escape on another getaway. But here’s the plot twist: everyone in the group (except me) now has a family to raise.
Coordination has reached boss-level difficulty:
The Schedule Tetris: Matching four calendars when three people are managing husbands, school schedules, and household duties is an Olympic sport.
The Permission Slip Era: Being respectful wives means coordinating with their husbands first, which adds another layer of back-and-forth in the group chat.
The "Ask Your Husband First" Loop: The WhatsApp chat will go from radio silence to a sudden "JOM HOLIDAY!" followed by a week of waiting for spousal clearance.
Why It’s Never Really About the Destination
To be completely honest with you, I don't actually care where we go for our next FnF trip. We could book a flight to a tropical island, or we could literally rent a random Airbnb down the road.
What I’m actually looking forward to is just all four of us being in the exact same room at the same time.
As you get older, you realize the magic of long-term friendship isn't about the exotic locations you check off a bucket list. It’s about being in the same space, passing the hours talking endlessly, laughing until your stomach hurts, and making new unexpected memories that you’ll still be wheezing over ten years from now.
I am so endlessly grateful for these girls and the 20 years of chaos we've shared. Here’s to FnF finally making Trip #3 happen—may we stay friends till forever! 🌸✨
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